Procurement Specialist

Career Area:

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other.  We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Role Definition
Supports the execution of designing, developing, deploying, and monitoring procurement capabilities to provide business solutions that are globally effective & applicable.

Responsibilities
•    Leading projects associated with lean processes, global market understanding, tools, and systems.
•    Designs and develops solutions, collaborates with senior stakeholders and business users to collect voice-of-business/voice-of-customer, business requirements, and prepares implementation plans for successful deployment.
•    Contributes to strategic initiatives such as the development of standardized best practices, offerings, services and development of associated tools and training.
•    Serves as the lead technical representative for a respective discipline and will work directly with a wide range of procurement and enterprise representatives, including presenting recommendations to senior leaders.

Skill Descriptors
Data Analytics: Knowledge of techniques and processes for inspecting, cleansing, transforming, and modeling data; ability to discover useful information, draw logical conclusions, and support decision-making.

Level Working Knowledge: 
•    Collects required data through various data sources and documents them for evaluating trends and activities.
•    Assists in preparing charts, graphs, tables, and other tools to represent the results obtained from data analysis.
•    Researches business-related data, analyzes, interprets, and presents findings to management.
•    Recognizes and assesses problems, opportunities, and methods for improving existing business performance.
•    Utilizes designated data analysis software to analyze the data.

Negotiating: Knowledge of successful negotiation concepts and techniques; ability to negotiate successfully across the organization and with external vendors and clients in a constructive and collaborative manner.

Level Extensive Experience: 
•    Ensures negotiators have awareness of complementary yet diverse interests.
•    Successfully completes significant negotiations, both internal and external.
•    Details the risks of negotiation breakdown from each party's perspective.
•    Protects own position, while demonstrating willingness to achieve win-win.
•    Identifies similarities and differences in position and assesses impact on discussions.
•    Detects and addresses lack of progress or a stalemate.

Matrix Management: Understanding of the importance of being able to leverage external resources when required and ability to build and use effective working relationships within own department and across department, functional, and geographic reporting lines.

Level Working Knowledge: 
•    Communicates effectively up, down, and across the organization.
•    Balances requirements and deliverables from various functional areas.
•    Describes basic viewpoint of own functional specialty.
•    Under guidance, identifies and resolves potentially conflicting requirements.
•    Keeps relevant functional and line associates involved on key project or tactical issues.

Vendor/Supplier Management: Knowledge of external provider management processes and ability to effectively manage the business relationship with external providers (e.g., vendors, service providers, contractors, consultants, and suppliers).

Level Extensive Experience: 
•    Manages actual and perceived conflict of interest issues.
•    Influences existing and new vendor relationships and the approved vendor list.
•    Interprets documents detailing service provisions and financial arrangements.
•    Explains case studies of effective and ineffective partnering relationships and lessons learned.
•    Monitors and communicates vendor effectiveness, reliability, and performance.
•    Advises others on the issues and considerations for working with new vendors, suppliers, or partners.

Cost Management: Knowledge of cost management; ability to plan and control organizational costs in order to lower product and service costs and maximize return.

Level Extensive Experience: 
•    Evaluates the effectiveness of organizational cost management procedures; makes corrections accordingly.
•    Coaches others on how to use software to improve the effectiveness of cost management.
•    Oversees the implementation of raw material, labor and overhead cost control processes.
•    Directs cost estimation activities for budgeting and business planning.
•    Approves over-budget expenditures based on comprehensive considerations.
•    Analyzes project or business operations to identify where cost savings can be made.

Category Management: Knowledge of category management within an organization's goods and services sector; ability to use this knowledge to analyze and improve the end-to-end procurement process and maximize business profitability.

Level Working Knowledge: 
•    Assists senior category professionals in creating categories based on spend analysis, market analysis, and other stages of the category management lifecycle.
•    Follows established procedures, guidelines, and approval level requests to perform procurement activities.
•    Identifies and documents challenges related to category management.
•    Participates in defining goals, KPIs, and objectives of the assigned category.
•    Utilizes basic tools and technologies to analyze procurement management data.

Procurement: Knowledge of buying and procurement; ability to work with organizational strategies and practices, and use tools for buying goods, supplies, equipment and services needed to conduct business.

Level Extensive Experience: 
•    Monitors effectiveness of procurement policies in high-cost or critical path purchases.
•    Selects appropriate qualified suppliers and negotiates related contracts.
•    Compares and contrasts alternative sourcing strategies (sole sourcing, reverse auctions, etc.).
•    Develops alternative sources of supply for the manufacturing organization.
•    Assists in creating contingency plans for and with critical suppliers.
•    Coordinates the procurement of a variety of products, materials and services.

Contracts Management and Administration: Knowledge of policies, standards and processes of how to manage and administer contracts; ability to use proper processes and practices for managing and administering a variety of contractual agreements.

Level Working Knowledge: 
•    Administers locally relevant contracts for the department.
•    Implements organizational protocols and procedures for contracts management.
•    Explains the types of information required before a contract is signed.
•    Reviews contracts to ensure compliance with contract specifications and regulations.
•    Assists in creating files of relevant information for specific vendors, customers, or contracts.

Desired Qualification

Business or Supply Chain Degree

Experience as a Buyer in a manufacturing environment

Preferred Qualifications

Familiar with casting or machining

This Job Description is intended as a general guide to the job duties for this position and is intended for the purpose of establishing the specific salary grade. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as an exhaustive summary of all responsibilities, duties and effort required of employees assigned to this job. At the discretion of management, this description may be changed at any time to address the evolving needs of the organization. It is expressly not intended to be a comprehensive list of “essential job functions” as that term is defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Summary Pay Range:

Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Caterpillar. 

Benefits:

Subject to plan eligibility, terms, and guidelines. This is a summary list of benefits.

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits*

• Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holidays, Volunteer, etc.)*

• 401(k) savings plans*

• Health Savings Account (HSA)*

• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)*

• Health Lifestyle Programs*

• Employee Assistance Program*

• Voluntary Benefits and Employee Discounts*

• Career Development*

• Incentive bonus*

• Disability benefits

• Life Insurance

• Parental leave

• Adoption benefits

• Tuition Reimbursement

* These benefits also apply to part-time employees

Posting Dates:

Any offer of employment is conditioned upon the successful completion of a drug screen.

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer, Including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities.  Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply.

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